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STATE OF INDIANA 



DEDICATION CEREMONIES 



Morton Statue and Monument 



REPORT OF COMMISSION 



1907 



INDIANAPOLIS: 

WM. B BURFORD, CONTRACTOR FOR STATE PRINTING AND BINDING. 

1908. 









s.«'o?* 




^-'Il^^ 




OLIVER P. MORTON 




MORTON MONUMENT 



REPORT OF COMMISSION 



Hon. J. FeajStk Hanly^ Governor of Indiana: 

Sir — The Commission appointed by you to erect a statue 
of Oliver P. Morton, respectfully reports : 

That at its twenty-fifth annual Encampment held at 
Winona, Ind., in June, 1904, the Department of Indiana, 
Grand Army of the Republic, an organization of honorably 
discharged soldiers who served in the army and navy and 
preserved the integrity of the Republic of the United States 
of America in the great Civil War from A. D. 1861 to 1865, 
memorialized the Legislature of the State of Indiana to 
appropriate sufficient money to erect a monument to per- 
petuate the memory of Oliver Perry Morton, Governor of 
Indiana during that period. The memorial adopted was 
presented by Comrade Warren R. King of Greenfield, In- 
diana. The Department Commander, Daniel R. Lucas, ap- 
pointed Comrades Warren R. King, George W. Grubbs, 
David N. Foster, A. D. Vanosdol and Charles M. Travis, 
a committee to present said memorial to the Legislature of 
Indiana at its next session, which would assemble the 5th 
day of January, 1905. The committee faithfully performed 
the duty for which it had been appointed, and the follow- 
ing act was passed by the Legislature, and at once after 
its passage, and upon presentation to the Governor, was 
signed by him February 25, 1905 : 

An act to provide for the erection of a monument in memory of 

Oliver P. Morton, and appropriating money therefor, 

and declaring an emergency. 

Whereas, No man in civil life, save Abraham Lincoln, did more for 
the Union during the Civil War than Oliver P. Morton, the 
great War Governor of Indiana, and 



Ifbtrattott (UntmnxttSB 



Whereas, The State of Indiana has never erected a monument or 
any other suitable memorial within the borders of the state to 
perpetuate his name and memory, and 
Whereas, The Department of Indiana, Grand Army of the Repub- 
lic, has memorialized this General Assembly to appropriate 
sufficient funds from the state treasury to erect an heroic 
statue of enduring material, in a conspicuous location within 
the state house grounds to perpetuate his name and memory; 
therefore 

Section 1. Be it enacted by the General Assembly of the State 
of Indiana, That the sum of thirty-five thousand dollars ($35,000) 
be and the same is hereby appropriated out of the funds in the state 
treasury for the purpose of erecting an heroic statue of enduring 
material to perpetuate the name, memory and services of Oliver 
Perry Morton, the great War Governor of Indiana, the eminent 
senator, the courageous patriot : Provided, That five thousand dol- 
lars only of said appropriation shall be available in the year 1905, 
and the remainder of said appropriation shall be available in the 
year 1906. 

Sec. 2. That for the purpose of organizing to build such monu- 
ment, the Governor shall appoint five commissioners, three of whom 
shall be members of the Grand Army of the Republic, Department 
of Indiana. Such appointments shall be made not later than thirty 
days after the passage and approval of this act, and their terms 
shall be not exceeding four years ; the Governor shall at once notify 
such persons of their appointment, under his certificate and seal, 
and such notice shall constitute their commission, and shall be by 
them deposited in the office of the secretary of state, and there re- 
corded. Tlie commissioners so appointed shall, within twenty days 
after their appointment, qualify by taking an oath that they will 
honestly, diligently and according to law, discharge their duties as 
such commissioners, and shall give bond to be approved by the Gov- 
ernor, each in the sum of five thousand dollars ($5,000.00), condi- 
tioned for the faithful performance of such duties as may be im- 
posed upon them by law, and that the cost of said monument shall 
not exceed said appropriation herein. Such commissioners shall 
constitute and be known as the "Board of Commissioners of the 
Oliver P. Morton Monument." They shall elect one of their num- 
ber as president, whose duty shall be to preside over meetings of 
said board, sign the record of proceedings thereof, and sign or 



Muttan iEiittuittfnt (!lflmmt0ai0tt 



stamp all vouchers before a warrant is drawn for their payment. 
They shall cause to be kept a record of their proceedings and shall 
report quarterly to the Governor, for the use of the public, a 
synopsis of their proceedings and an account of their expenditures. 
They may make such rules and regulations for the payment of 
money, the government of contractors and employes, and the man- 
agement of the grounds and premises as they may deem prudent, 
not inconsistent with this act and the laws of the state. They may 
meet on their own. adjournment and shall meet at the call of the 
president of the Board ; a majority thereof present at such meeting 
shall constitute a quorum for the transaction of business. They 
shall receive no compensation for their services, but shall be en- 
titled to their actual expenses for the time they are actually em- 
ployed in attending to their duties as commissioners, to be paid on 
itemized statements, sworn to by the claimant. The Governor may, 
for just cause, remove any member of said Board, and fill all va- 
cancies therein caused by removal or otherwise. 

Sec. 3. Such commissioners are authorized and directed, as 
herein provided, to build such monument, in a conspicuous location 
within the state house grounds; but no greater amount than is 
hereby appropriated shall ever be paid out of the funds of the state 
treasury : Provided, however. That said commissioners are author- 
ized to receive private contributions and to expend the same accord- 
ing to the provisions of this act. 

Sec. 4. Said commissioners shall prepare, select or adopt a de- 
sign or plan for said monument, and to enable them to do so, they 
shall at once cause publication to be made in at least two news- 
papers within the state and two newspapers without the state, that 
at a certain time, not to exceed six months thereafter, they will pro- 
ceed to examine such designs or plans and specifications for such 
monument, not to exceed in cost the appropriation herein, submit- 
ted to them by competent architects or artizans skilled in such work, 
and each of said architects or artizans so competing shall submit 
full and careful estimates of the cost of erecting said monument, 
and a sealed proposal of the fees, salary or percentage he will 
charge or expect if his plans should be adopted : Provided, how- 
ever, That said commissioners may reject any and all plans and de- 
signs so submitted if they consider them unsuitable, and readvertise 
in the same manner for further plans or designs. The commission- 
ers shall then proceed to give the plans or designs, specifications and 



SeMratton (^nsmonwB 



drawings which may have been submitted a thorough and critical 
examination. If they find the specifications and estimates correct 
and that the plans and designs, or any of them, can be constructed 
within the limits of cost aforesaid, and that the same are suitable 
in regard to permanence and appearance, and adapted to all the 
purposes and aims of such a monument, and in keeping with the 
dignity of the state, they may select the most meritorious of such 
plans or designs, and notify the successful architect thereof, and 
shall return the rejected plans or designs to the respective owners 
thereof. In advertising, as aforesaid, for plans or designs, the 
commissioners may also give notice that they are receiving bids for 
the entire work from persons wishing to accompany their plans or 
designs with such a bid ; and persons so accompanying their plans 
or designs with such bids may make their bids on condition that 
their plans or designs are not to be used, except in case of the 
award of the contract to them. 

Sec. 5. The commissioners are authorized to contract for labor, 
material and transportation, or any distinct portion of the work. 
All lettings of the work shall be advertised in two or more news- 
papers of general circulation, and sealed proposals shall be received 
therefor; but the commissioners shall have the right to reject any 
and all bids. In all contracts the interest of the state shall be pro- 
tected by proper bonds. Ten per cent, shall be reserved from pay- 
ments on estimates on w^ork in progress, until the contract therefor 
shall be completed and the work done thereunder inspected and ac- 
cepted by the commissioners. 

Sec. 6. The Board may, when they deem it necessary, employ a 
superintendent, who shall be qualified and give bond as prescribed 
by the Board, and whose duties and compensation shall also be pre- 
scribed by the Board. The Board shall appoint a secretary, who 
shall take an oath to faithfully perform the duties of his office ; he 
shall keep a record of the proceedings of the Board ; shall make a 
record of all contracts and obligations ; shall keep a set of books so 
as to show the financial condition of the Board, and shall make 
statements of the cost and expenditures, and a complete list of 
vouchers and for what purpose and to w^hom paid, upon request of 
the Governor. The pay of the secretary shall be fixed by said com- 
mission and he shall give bond in the sum of five thousand dollars 
for the performance of his duties. 



il0rtott iloitumfttt OIommt00i0« 



Sec. 7. The architect whose plans are selected shall be the su- 
pervising architect in building said monument, and he shall be 
liable on his bond for any failure in faithfully discharging the 
duties of his office, and for all losses and damages that may be in- 
curred on account of his violating any of the provisions of this act, 
or on account of his neglect or incapacity for the duties of his of- 
fice. He shall receive such compensation as may be agreed upon in 
advance between him and said commissioners as full compensation 
for plans and specifications, and supervision of the erection of such 
monument, as the architect thereof. 

Sec. 8. An emergency exists for the immediate taking effect of 
this act, therefore the same shall take effect and be in force from 
and after its passage. 

In accordance with said act, the Governor on the 16th 
day of March, 1905, appointed Warren E. King, Daniel 
E. Lncas, and Henry C. Adams, members of the Grand 
Army of the Eepublic, Department of Indiana, and Joseph 
I. Irwin and Elijah B. Martindale commissioners to carry 
out the provisions of said act. On March 21, 1905, in obedi- 
ence to the call of the Governor, the said commissioners 
met at the State Honse for organization; all present ex- 
cept Elijah B. Martindale, who was absent from the state. 

The oath of office was administered by Hon. David E. 
Myers, judge of the Appellate Court, after which the fol- 
lowing were elected officers pro tern.: Warren E. King, 
president; Daniel E. Lucas, secretary. The Commission 
then adjourned to meet March 28, 1905, at which time 
Messrs. King, Irwin, Adams and Lucas presented their 
bonds, which were approved by the Governor, after which 
Warren E. King was unanimously elected president. The 
attorney-general gave an opinion that no member of the 
Commission could receive a salary for any services ren- 
dered, and as the Commission desired that Daniel E. Lucas 
give his time and attention to the duties of secretary, and 
to receive proper compensation, therefore he was requested 



Spbtrattnn (HtvtmanxtB 



to resign as a member of the Commission in order to serve 
as secretary. Joseph I. Irwin was elected treasurer. 

April 20. The Commission met, all being present. 
Daniel E. Lucas reported that he had tendered his resigna- 
tion as a member of the Commission and that the same 
had been accepted by the Governor, and that his successor 
would be appointed in a short time. Daniel R. Lucas was 
then elected secretary of the Commission and his compen- 
sation was fixed at $60 per month, with an allowance of 
$20 per month for services of a stenographer, if the same 
should be necessary. 

The president and secretary were authorized to have 
printed certificates to be presented to such persons as 
should contribute to the fund for the erection of the statue. 

May 5. Isaac H. C. Royse became a member of the 
Commission, to fill the vacancy occasioned by the resigna- 
tion of Daniel R. Lucas. 

June 27. The secretary was directed to have the fol- 
lowing notice published in the Engineering News, Chicago 
Tribune, Indianapolis News and Star: 

Design for Statue of Oliver P. Morton Desired. 

In harmony with the law, the Board of Commissioners of the 
Oliver P. Morton Monument, hereby advertises for designs for a 
pedestal and a heroic and colossal statue of Governor Morton, the 
purpose being to secure designs for the statue and pedestal, with 
the privilege of accepting one without the other. The Commission 
desire the designer to state the height and size of the figure, the 
relative firmness of the bronze he will use in the same, and the cost 
of the same complete and set in position. Also the length of time it 
will take to complete the statue after the design is accepted. 

Designs and bids for this large statue will be received until 
January 1, 1906. Address all proposals and inquiries to D. R. 
Lucas, secretary. Room 25, State House, Indianapolis, Indiana. 

D. R. Lucas, 
Indianapolis, Ind., July 12. 1905. Secretary. 



Mavtan Mmmmnxt OIommtBcinn 



January 2, 1906. A meeting of the Commission was 
held and designs were loresented by Franklin Simmons, 
Rome, Italy; PI. E. Shenton, Smith Granite Co., Westerly, 
R. I.; Rudolf Schwarz, Indianapolis; McDonnell & Sons, 
Buffalo, by Henry Myers, Indianapolis. The Commission 
decided to accept none of the designs offered and to receive 
designs at a meeting to be held February 9. The secretary 
was directed to correspond with those presenting designs 
as to cost, etc. 

February 9. The Commission met, and designs were 
presented by Franklin Simmons, Rome, Italy; Hugh A. 
Price, Chicago, 111.; Rudolf Schwarz, Indianapolis, for 
bronze figures and tablets. 

E. E. Dunlap, Columbus, Ind., and John R. Lowe, Indi- 
anapolis, Ind., presented designs for pedestals. 

It was resolved to contract with Rudolf Schwarz for 
a bronze statue of Governor Morton to be twelve feet in 
height, for the sum of nine thousand dollars, he to present 
to the Commission for its approval a model of the same 
within thirty days. 

A contract with Mr. John R. Lowe was made, providing 
that he prepare a design for a pedestal for said monument, 
and if the same was approved by the Commission, he was 
to receive architect's fees for the same. 

The plans and specifications by Mr. Lowe were accepted 
and after legal notice being given in the newspapers, bids 
for the same were received April 10, 1906, as follows : 

McDonnell & Sons, by Henry Myers, $7,800, Barre granite; 
$10,600. Westerly granite. 

B. M. Hutehins, Columbus, Ind., $9,991, Barre granite. 

Thomas Staniland & Co., Dayton, Ohio, $8,000, Barre granite. 

Chas. G. Blake & Co., Chicago, III, $7,483, Barre granite; 
$10,150, Westerly granite. 

John Pierce & Co., Indianapolis, $8,658, Fox Island granite. 



9 



i?litratt0tt (EtnmatmB 



The bid of Chas. G. Blake & Co. was accepted and the 
contract was so awarded. 

The Commission unanimously resolved that the location 
for the monument should be at the east entrance of the 
state house, and that the officers of the state should be 
requested to designate this place as "Morton Plaza." 

May 28. Upon earnest recommendation of Mr. Schwarz, 
the dimensions of the pedestal were considerably enlarged, 
and Chas. G. Blake & Co. were allowed therefor $935 in 
addition to the contract price. 

June 4, 1906, a contract was entered into with Rudolf 
Schwarz to furnish and place in position the following 
bronze work in addition to the statue heretofore contracted 
for: 

First, letters of the name "MORTON." 

Second, a historic tablet four feet six inches by five feet in size, 
giving a brief history of life and services of Governor Morton. 

Third, a Grand Army tablet, two feet six inches by eight feet. 

Fourth, two bronze statues of soldiers of the Civil War, each 
ten feet high, for all of which the Commission was to pay Rudolf 
Schwarz $7,500.00, the said Schwarz having bid the prices hereto- 
fore set out in the proposal which he submitted for the statue of 
Governor Morton. 

August 9, 1906. After legal notice by publication in 
newspapers had been given, the Commission received bids 
for two balustrades to be placed at the north and south 
sides of Morton Plaza, which bids were as follows : 

Co-operative Granite Co., by George P. Wright: 

Plan A $7,323 00 

Plan B 6,340 00 

Plan C 5,955 00 

Plan D 6,885 00 

Scholz, Wilbert Co. : 

For either Plan A, B, C or D 6,600 00 

10 



ilortott ilnitumfnt OIommisBtntt 



Chas. G. Blake & Co. : 

Plan A $6,199 00 

Plan B ." 5,318 00 

Plan C 5,172 00 

Plan D 7,240 00 

Paoli Monument and Stone Works : 

Plan A 8,750 00 

Plan B 7,240 00 

Plan C 6,600 00 

Plan D 7,240 00 

The Commission "unanimously decided to adopt Plan 
D, and the firm of Chas. G. Blake & Co., being the lowest 
bidder, was awarded the contract for the same. 

A contract with Rudolf Schwarz was entered into pro- 
viding for the furnishing and putting in place on the middle 
columns of the balustrades: two bronze bas-reliefs, for 
five hundred dollars each, subjects for the same to be fur- 
nished by the Commission. 

May 10, 1907. In accordance with an act of the Legisla- 
ture, House Bill 702, approved March 9, 1907, which pro- 
vided ''that the Board of Commissioners of the Oliver P. 
Morton Monument are hereby authorized and directed to 
improve and ornament the site upon which the monument 
stands, being the area located at the east entrance to the 
state capitol, together with the approaches thereto, in such 
manner as the Board may deem advisable, in order to ren- 
der the surroundings of said monument harmonious there- 
with," a committee was appointed to carry out the provi- 
sions of this act. 

May 29, 1907. The pedestal and balustrades being com- 
pleted and the bronze work sufficiently near completion to 
justify the action, the Commission, with the advice and 
consent of the Governor, designated Tuesday, July 23, 1907, 
as a date for the ceremonies of the unveiling of the Morton 
statue and the dedication of the monument. 

11 



S^Jiiratton deremnmea 



Si3ecial invitations were extended to the Governor of 
Indiana and members of liis staff; 

The Governors of the various states; 

The Vice-President, Senators and Eepresentatives in 
Congress from Indiana ; 

The members of the last two Legislatures ; 

The State Officers of Indiana; 

The relatives and personal friends of Governor 
Morton ; 

The National Guard of the State of Indiana ; 

General invitation was also extended to all soldiers of 
the Civil War and to citizens of Indiana. 

No better description of the dedicatory services can be 
given than that which appeared in the Indianapolis News of 
July 23, 1907, which follows : 

Forty years after the signal services of Oliver P. Morton to his 
state and to the nation, the state provided a means of honoring his 
memory, and this afternoon the monument erected to Morton, In- 
diana 's and the Nation 's great War Governor, was unveiled before 
thousands of Indiana people. Soldiers, old and young; men who 
fought the Civil War fight in the field and here at home with Mor- 
ton himself; their wives; their children and their grandchildren, 
and those who know Morton only as a part of the history of a 
critical time — all honored themselves in paying tribute to his 
memory by taking part in the ceremonies incident to the unveiling 
of the Morton monument on the east plaza — henceforth the Morton 
Plaza — of the State House. 

The Civil War and reconstruction; the patriotism of a people 
united; the fuller realization by the younger generation of the 
trials of 1861- '65, in the field and at home — these thoughts came to 
the minds of the thousands whose voices swelled from a hesitating 
start into grand volume the national song, ' ' America, ' ' at the begin- 
ning of the ceremonies at the monument. 

The veteran soldiers, hot and tired, had settled into the com- 
fortable seats provided for them to the north end of the monument ; 
the guardsmen who had taken part in the parade had disposed 
themselves around the edges of the crowd ; the carriages had driven 

12 



Maxtan iMottum^nt Cflommtssiott 



up to the plaza and the speakers had taken their places on the plat- 
form. 

Suddenly sixty instruments, the three bands of the National 
Guard that had been massed together near the monument, took up 
the National song. For a few notes the bands played alone; the 
people rose from their seats ; a few voices were brave enough to 
start to sing, and then their neighbors, ashamed at their hesitancy, 
caught up the words and the air of the song, until the strains of 
"America" came from the bands and five thousand voices. 

This was the beginning of the program incident to the unveil- 
ing of the Morton monument and the presentation of the same to 
the State of Indiana. 

PARADE. 

At 2:30 o'clock strains of music were heard, and those on the 
platform saw the head of the parade, of which Gen. Oran Perry 
was grand marshal, led by a provisional regiment of the Indiana 
National Guard, consisting of three battalions of four companies 
each, commanded by Colonel Harry B. Smith, marching around 
Monument Place, thence west on Market street to Morton Plaza. 
The guardsmen had left Fort Benjamin Harrison at noon, had 
come to College avenue and Sixteenth street on the traction cars, 
then marched past the Governor's residence, were reviewed by him, 
and escorted him down to the monument. The guard were fol- 
lowed by carriages containing the Governor, members of his staff, 
the members of the Commission, reception committee and represen- 
tatives of the Grand Army of the Republic and Woman's Relief 
Corps. 

In Meridian street, between North street and the Soldiers' 
Monument, the Governor reviewed the battalions of the veteran sol- 
diers of the Grand Army of the Republic, who saluted him with 
flags as he passed. As the Governor and his escort passed, these 
organizations fell in line under command of William A. Ketcham, 
Commander of the Department of Indiana, Grand Army of the Re- 
public. The veteran soldiers were headed by Oliver Perry Morton 
Post No. 1, G. A. R., of Terre Haute, Ind. 

Seats were provided for the veteran soldiers on the north of 
the platform, and slowly and carefully they filed into them. When 
all were seated, the following program was carried out : 

1. Call to order, Dr. W. R. King, President of Commission. 

2. Music, "America," bands and audience. 

13 



S^lrtratt0tt (tn^tnmmB 



3, Invocation, Rev. Joseph S. Jenckes. 

4, Music, Scottish Rite Quartet, "God Ever Glorious." 

5, Report of Secretary, D, R. Lucas, in part as follows: 

'*A thousand years from now the man standing by this monu- 
ment will find upon it that which will explain its existence as well 
then as today. The bronze tablet bearing these words will appear : 

OLIVER PERRY MORTON. 

Born in Wayne County, Indiana, August 4, 1823. 

Died in Indianapolis, November 1, 1877. 

Age, fifty-four years, two months and twenty-five dajrs. 

Admitted to the Bar in 1847. 

Served as Governor of Indiana from January 16, 1861, to March 
4, 1867. 

Served as United States Senator from Indiana from March 4, 
1867, until his death, November 1, 1877. 

In aU ways and at all times the friend of the Union soldier, the 
friend of the country, the upholder of Abraham Lincoln, the de- 
fender of the flag and the Union of the States. Patriot, states- 
man, lover of liberty, heroic in heart, inflexible in purpose, and 
ever to be known in history as 

THE GREAT WAR GOVERNOR. 

The various parts of the structure, the pedestal, the balustrades 
and the bronze work were open to the competition of all. The 
pedestal and balustrades were erected by Chas. G. Blake & Co., of 
Chicago, and the bronze work by Rudolf Schwarz of this city. All 
the members of the Commission have taken an active interest in the 
work and have held twenty-eight regular meetings, some of them 
at the studio of Mr. Schwarz. 

The secretary has devoted his time for over two years to the de- 
tails, and the work will be completed within the limits of the appro- 
priation by the state and the contributions of comrades and citizens. 

Perfect harmony has prevailed in all the deliberations of the 
Board and they lay down the work feeling .grateful to the Giver of 
all good that they have been spared to do the work and to see 
erected under their care and purpose, this memorial to one whom 
they have all personally known, and whose laborious life for his 
country will be an inspiration to patriotism for a thousand genera- 
tions. 

14 



morton Monntntnt (tommxBBwn 



Granite and bronze will fade, the great stones of this pedestal 
will perish ere the name and fame of this great American shall be 
forgotten." 

6. Song by Quartet. 

UNVEIUNG OP STATUE. 

Following this, Master Oliver Perry Throck Morton, eight years 
of age, who bears every one of his illustrious grandfather's names, 
came from the family group on the platform and pulled the 
mechanism that unveiled the figure of his grandfather. 

As he pulled the string the flag around the bronze figure of 
Morton swung up and up in the air until it hung above clear and 
free in the breeze, and the veteran soldiers, struck by the likeness 
of the bronze to the man who had befriended them time and time 
again, in ways as several as were the needs, started the cheering 
that found response in the cheers of those who knew only by hear- 
say and history of the work of Governor Morton. 

PRESENTATION ADDRESS. 

7. Presentation address by Dr. W. R. King, president, on be- 
half of the Commission : 

"Mr. Governor: 

We, the Commissioners whom you so highly honored by the ap- 
pointment for the purpose of organizing to build a monument in 
memory of Indiana's great War Governor, according to an act of 
the Legislature and approved by you February 5, 1905, now have 
the pleasure of presenting this monument to you, and pray that you 
receive the same, and that every hope and fondest desire that you 
may have cherished as to its construction and conception will be 
realized to the utmost measure. We assure you that the work has 
received from us our most thoughtful and careful consideration, 
and that at all times we have kept the best interests of the state in 
view, as well as the very best results possible with the amount of 
money appropriated and donated. 

So much so that we are proud to tell you that after every con- 
tract that was necessary to complete the monument had been pro- 
vided for, we yet had to our credit nearly three thousand dollars, 
which the last Legislature, by your approval, authorized and di- 
rected us to expend in improving the site upon which the monu- 

15 



Seotrattntt Qlf«ttt0nt^a 



ment stands, and to provide for a suitable dedication of the same. 
We fully expected to have followed the instruction of the law ere 
this, by removing the old unsightly pavement and replacing it with 
a granitoid, but were disappointed owing to the delayed shipment 
of material. While the success of the enterprise has depended 
largely upon the creative genius of the sculptor, we have given him 
all the aid we could from a personal knowledge of the great man 
who is thus being honored. We also called upon others who had 
more specific knowledge. No one was so valuable as Mrs. Morton 
herself. The weather was never too inclement for her, with a 
special friend, to go to the sculptor 's studio and aid him in tracing 
the lines and features of that face which is so indelibly impressed 
upon her memory by the power of that love for him, which began in 
maidenhood and will remain while life may last. 

Col. W. R. Holloway, the private secretary of the late Governor, 
gave valuable suggestions as to pose and gesture. And to those 
who have a deep interest and pri'de in the upbuilding of art in the 
state and capital city, for their aid and encouragement in the work, 
we have not the words to express our thanks. 

So, withal, we feel that we have an heroic statue that fills the 
Morton conception to its fullest extent. A man with a splendid 
physique, a dignified pose, an easy gliding gesture, a man who 
moved men by words and not by striking attitudes. 

The side figures fill out in a measure the contour of the monu- 
ment, but they may answer yet other purposes. He who has not 
time to stop and read may see as he hastens by that this monument 
refers to a war period in the history of this country. 

Besides, if the mute and inanimate lips of the form of him who 
stands above could speak, we know that they would say, ' Give me 
the boys in blue, to keep with me the vigils of the years to come ; 
let them stand with me beneath the moon 's pale and reflected light, 
beneath the glinting rays of stars, 'mid the darkness and storm of 
night, or to watch with me the crimson coming of the morn and the 
uprising of the great king of day, and see him lovingly lay his 
dazzling rays aslant yonder pile erected in memory of Indiana's 
silent victors. ' 

Yes, oh yes, we know they would say, 'give me the representa- 
tives of the thousands of Indiana's bravest and best boys, who came 
to my frequent calls, and whose feet pressed the historic grounds 
hereabouts until they were equipped, and then when they had re- 

16 



iHnrtott iHonum^nt OIommtfiBton 



ceived my admonition and blessings, with waving banners they 
turned their faces southward and went down, down into the vortex, 
wherein was the struggle for the life of the nation. 

'Thousands of them perished and now lie in unknown but hon- 
ored graves. Those who by providence did return again, I re- 
ceived with mingled emotions of sorrow and pride, sorrowful for 
their scars of many battles and their bodies wasted by disease and 
privation, sorrowful for their comrades who were absent but ac- 
counted for, sorrowful for those who had so long waited and 
watched in vain. But with pride when I remembered that all of 
those banners that went away waving so proudly, while they came 
back weather stained, shot and shell torn, not one of them had the 
slightest stain of dishonor upon it ! ' 

The tablet upon the reverse side of the major die we think most 
fitting. Although Governor Morton was not, nor never could have 
been, a member of the Grand Army of the Republic, it is a historic 
fact that at one time, in all probability, this great organization 
would have passed out of existence had it not been for him. The 
history that is in the archives of the Department of Indiana, Grand 
Army of the Republic, says in part: 'As a historic fact, to the 
Union soldiers of Indiana is due the credit of breathing the first 
breath of life into the great soldier and sailor organization that was 
in 1866 christened the Grand Army of the Republic. Four men are 
responsible for the birth of that organization. Dr. B. F. Stephen- 
son of Illinois, Governor Oliver P. Morton, General R. S. Foster 
and Major Oliver M. Wilson of Indiana. While Dr. Stephenson 
was the author of the conception of the organization, he was not 
able to build the superstructure thereon, but the master mind was 
found in Oliver P. Morton; the builder, in General R. S. Foster, 
and his no less efficient assistant, Major Oliver M. Wilson. And so 
it will go down with the ages that the Department of Indiana, 
Grand Army of the Republic, memorialized the Legislature to ap- 
propriate sufficient money for the erection of this monument. Be- 
sides, go to each and every member of that organization who were 
Indiana soldiers or sailors and you will be greatly surprised at the 
number who will tell you how, in a personal way, he had received 
special favors or help from him. 

It is a lamentable fact that there is no adequate history of the 
work and sacrifices of the women of Indiana during the war. In 
the bas-relief of the south balustrade we will, in a small way, por- 



[2-17955] 17 



iflitration (EnnnotmB 



tray some of their work. No estimate can be put upon the work 
they did; while some were supplying clothing and hospital sup- 
plies, others went down to the very border line of danger to help 
nurse back to health the sick and wounded, when possible. But if 
such could not be done, and in providence they Avere never more 
permitted to return to their homes, in their own tactful way they 
recorded the last wishes and words to be sent to friends and rela- 
tives at home. 

As to the north bas-relief, it will portray a familiar scene dur- 
ing war, and we have already spoken thereof, the reception of the 
homecoming veterans. 

As to the construction of the monument, the foundation upon 
which the pedestal stands was deeply laid and is composed of solid 
masonry of limestone and cement. The pedestal is of massive 
blocks of the best Barre granite, the major die of which weighs 32 
tons and required sixteen horses to move it from the car to its final 
resting place. 

The bronze of the monument weighs about 16,000 pounds, 8,000 
of which is in the Morton figure alone, and is composed of ninety 
per cent, copper, eight per cent, tin and two per cent. zinc. The 
balustrades have received the same care in their construction and 
material as the monument itself. 

As to the sculptor, Rudolf Schwarz, words fail in the presence 
of this magnificent monument, the equal of any the world has ever 
produced. He is our own sculptor of Indianapolis and Indiana. 
All of his work was done in his studio in this city, from the model- 
ing in clay to the casting of the bronze, of which but few cities in 
the United States can boast. 

Our relations with aU of the competing contractors have been 
the most pleasant, not one of whom, had he been awarded the con- 
tract by reason of the lowest bidder, but what we feel that he would 
have filled the same faithfully and honestly. As to Blake & Com- 
pany of Chicago, who were awarded the foundation and pedestal 
contract, we have found them to be men of the very highest in- 
tegrity and honor. John R. Lowe, the designer of the original 
pedestal, we found to be a man of integrity and skilled in his work. 
Mr. Elmer E. Dunlap, the superintendent of the work, was careful 
and painstaking in his examinations and suggestions concerning 
the work at hand. Owing to his state and national reputation for 
patriotism, his close personal relation to the late Governor, the 



18 




GOVERNOR J. FRANK HANLY. 



jinrtQtt monument (Enmmiaainu 



pastor, adviser and comforter of Mrs. Morton, our words, however 
fulsome, would be indeed insignificant concerning our secretary, D. 
R. Lucas. His opinions have at all times been considered the same 
as our own, and indeed he has been considered one of the com- 
mission. 

But now this monument passes from our hands. From the be- 
ginning of the work it has been our vision by day and our dream 
by night. But whatever judgment may be passed upon it by com- 
petent critics, it will not add to or detract from the great work of 
him in whose memory it has been erected. But rather for the pur- 
pose as was wisely observed by Plutarch centuries ago, wherein he 
said 'that the honor which is paid to great men ought not to be 
looked upon as the reward of their illustrious actions, but only as 
a mark of the esteem in which they are held, the remembrance 
whereof such monuments are intended to perpetuate.' 

It is not the stateliness nor the magnificence of public monu- 
ments which gives them their value or makes them durable, but the 
sincere gratitude of those that erect them. And so this monument 
will not only perpetuate the memory of Oliver P. Morton, Indiana's 
great War Governor, but it will also perpetuate the fact that the 
citizens of Indiana who lived at the time of its building did not lack 
in three of the greatest virtues, love, memory and gratitude. ' ' 

governor's address. 

Address of Governor J. Frank Hanly, accepting the monument 
for the State of Indiana: 

"Mr, President and Gentlemen of the Commission: 

On behalf of the people of the State of Indiana, I accept from 
your hands this tribute of granite and bronze erected and dedi- 
cated to the memory of Oliver P. Morton, In erecting and dedi- 
cating it you have rendered a signal service to your countrymen. 
The deed you now and here complete will make this day and this 
spot historic. 

By means of the sculptor's art you bring back to us the form 
and features of a much beloved and long departed son, and enable 
us to give expression to the affection and veneration in which we 
have ever held and still do hold him ; also to the faith we have in 
the institutions for which he stood and for which he did heroic 
battle. For this service I thank you in the name and in behalf 
of all the people of the Commonwealth. 

19 



l^Jrtratwtt (HmmonxsB 



Oliver P. Morton is dead. His mortal body has gone from our 
sight and found rest beneath the soil that gave him birth. The 
earth has claimed her own. His work is finished. His sun is set. 
For him ' life 's fitful fever 's ended. ' A mound within the cemetery 
— a stone inscribed with loving word — where each recurring spring 
immortal nature weaves anew a garland of myrtle and forget-me- 
nots ; these our hands have fashioned to mark the spot where sleeps 
his mortal part. 

He is gone. For thirty years he has not been among us. He 
will walk in the flesh with us no more forever. 

The powerful arm upon which the martyred Lincoln leaned; 
the mighty hand that kept a wavering state within the Union's 
gates, whose unerring finger-point the way to victory led, through 
strife and sacrifice, have long been limp and lifeless. A breath or 
touch of air would make them formless as the dust beneath our 
feet. 

The tongue, whose logic, trenchant as a soldier's blade, dis- 
solving sophistry and doubt, carried conviction, straight as a ray 
of light, to the minds of listening multitudes, is stilled. For three 
decades it has coined no phrase and uttered no word, no syllable. 

The voice, inspiring as a bugle call impelling armies to the 
frenzied charge, which moved the people of this Commonwealth to 
do his will, and later, bent a stubborn Senate to his unfaltering 
purpose, is hushed in death. For years its clarion notes have not 
been heard. 

The lustrous eyes through which his rare, intrepid soul looked 
out upon his fellows, at whose kindling light the stooping, fright- 
ened friends of freedom stood erect and faced the uncertain issues 
of civil war, and at whose fierce gleam and piercing glance his coun- 
try 's foes within the state he ruled slunk away, abashed, trembling 
and afraid, have long been closed and sightless. 

The spacious dome beneath his massive beetling brow, where 
trooped like marching squadrons the virile children of his giant 
brain, is tenantless and empty. The mansion of his soul is desolate. 
He is no more. But we do not forget him. We cannot forget him, 
for he, and such as he, are unforgetable. A nation still walks in 
the path by him hewn out and to him unconscious homage hourly 
pays. The coinage of his tongue continues to pass current among 
us. His voice still inspires to lofty purpose, stirs to ardent action, 
and impels to consecrated service. Something of his clear vision 

20 



mortfln Honum^nt (EmitmtBHioit 



and keen insight remains and falls anon athwart our path as amid 
the night's encircling gloom we grope our way to the higher plane 
of life and duty. The children of his mighty intellect live on. The 
concepts of his mind, the utterances of his tongue, have not died. 
They were not buried in the grave with his mortal dust. They 
could no more be buried there than truth itself, of which they are a 
part, could be confined within the limits of the tomb. Winged with 
the breath of divinity, they are enduring and eternal. Thus it is 
with them and thus it is with him. The grave out yonder in Crown 
Hill Cemetery holds only his physical form — the habitation in 
which he dwelt. The master of the house is not there. Standing 
by its open portal, after the lapse of thirty years, we look in vain 
for him we loved. We gaze upon the waste and ruin time has 
wrought. We behold the changes nature works in matter. We 
stoop and lift within our hands his lifeless, formless dust. Stand- 
ing so, we remember that 'this corruptible must put on incorrup- 
tion, this mortal must put on immortality. ' Through the centuries 
and across the limitations of space, from the far-away land of 
Palestine, there comes to our inner consciousness the reassuring 
promise: 'I am the resurrection, and the life; he that believeth in 
Me, though he were dead, yet shall he live.' Standing thus and 
hearing this promise, we know that he whom we seek is not there ; 
that the dust we hold is not he ; that the great soul we knew and 
loved and honored has long since joined the Infinite — that immor- 
tality and the 'life everlasting' are his forever. 

His body is dead and mingled with the elements; his spirit, 
freed from its tenement of clay, has swept in splendor into the 
Great Beyond. But in a sense he still lives and will long live and 
dwell among us. The influence of his deeds is still about us. The 
nobility of his life still uplifts us. 

Assembled about this pedestal are the patriarchs of a past age, 
the gray-haired survivors of a generation now all but gone, the 
nestors of the Commonwealth, who carved a state from the wilder- 
ness and planted civilization in the solitudes of the prairies. 

To you, sirs, this occasion must indeed be big with meaning, and 
fraught with feeling profound and deep. 

As you look upon it the immobile face of this bronze image stirs 
to life a thousand memories of the days when in the plenitude of 
his power, he whose counterpart this stately statue is, led you in 
heroic effort and sublime endeavor to the saving of a nation's life. 

21 



Ifbiratton (EfremontPB 



These mute lips, silent and inanimate as the insensate granite be- 
neath, do speak to you, and to us, and will speak to our children 
when we are gone. They tell the story of a people 's crucial trial ; 
of cogent speech and stirring message ; of appeal and sharp com- 
mand; of muster camps and marshaled armies; of supplies as- 
sembled; of equipment found and funds obtained; of millions 
handled without the taint or stain of graft or peculation; of rug- 
ged honesty that would not yield though temptation stood on every 
side ; of the exercise of power outside the law, without abuse ; of an 
overpowering, overmastering will that could not brook resistance; 
of enemies at home, foiled, rebuked and silenced ; of criticisms un- 
just as hate, of calumnies cruel and venomous as the envy and 
malice that gave them birth ; of love and pity and tender care for 
the sick and wounded, the widowed and the fatherless; of a state 
betrayed and yet preserved ; of days of toil and nights of waking ; 
of high resolve, of solemn consecration ; of carnage and of sacrifice ; 
of wounds and death and prison walls ; of a land redeemed ; of a 
race set free ; of liberty enthroned ; of a nation glorified ; of a gov- 
ernment saved from dishonor and dismemberment; of the estab- 
lishment of national solidarity, of peace achieved, of a union recon- 
structed; of slavery abolished by constitutional enactment; of 
clearing skies and differences reconciled ; the story of a great man's 
life, of service high and holy, of years of sickness and never-ending 
pain ; of holding death at bay, of final dissolution. 

This, in brief, is the storj^ this silent figure tells. Fortunate the 
state, happy the nation, if we and our children hear and under- 
stand as you, our fathers, heard and understood. 

This man was no transient citizen of the state. He was 'to the 
manor born.' From the hour of his birth to the moment of his 
death, his home was within her borders. If duty to her called him 
elsewhere, his love was but intensified by his absence and he re- 
turned to her with higher consecration and holier purpose. The 
substantial whole of his adult life was given to her service. As a 
citizen, as judge of the circuit court, as the Governor of the Com- 
monwealth, as United States Senator, he devoted to her his every 
faculty. He never in all his life gave her a divided service. Body, 
mind and heart, all were given. 

He loved the state and was jealous of her sovereignty. En- 
croachments upon her rights he would not tolerate even from the 
Federal government. Within her sphere he held her to be supreme. 

22 



iiortan Monument (Eommt0Bt0« 



But he knew her sphere. He comprehended the dual form of our 
scheme of government. To him the ' many in one ' was no mystery. 
We were many states, but one people. Between the states and the 
national government there was no just basis of contention, no inter- 
mediate ground subject to the conflicting jurisdictions of the two. 
He loved the Union, loved it with a consuming passion, loved it be- 
cause he loved the state and believed the state could only find its 
highest destiny within the Union. He believed in its solidarity, in 
its unity, and in its indivisibility. With him the coercion of a re- 
bellious state was but the enforcement of the law. He believed the 
president to be without discretion in the premises ; that the consti- 
tution and the oath of his high office enjoined upon him the enforce- 
ment of the laws and the preservation of order throughout the 
Union, and that he could not be absolved from the responsibility 
thus devolved upon him. He would not admit the right of seces- 
sion to exist in any state, and was unwilling to concede independ- 
ence in any instance to anything short of successful revolution. 
There was no way out of the Union for a state except at the point of 
the bayonet, and then only after our best efforts had failed to com- 
pel her submission. The idea of a dismembered Union and the 
formation and establishment of hostile nations within her territory 
was fatal to the nation and to the states alike, and was therefore 
intolerable. He did not believe the fragments of a dissolved Union 
could live together in prosperity and peace, but that war would fol- 
low upon war until despotism should succeed anarchy, and liberty 
be destroyed. He freely admitted that it would cost much to save 
the Union (how much none knew better than he), but insisted that 
it would cost everything to lose it. 

He believed in the constitution and was unwilling that it should 
be amended by judicial construction. And when it was sought to 
so amend it in behalf of human slavery he boldly challenged the 
right of the court to exercise such power and appealed from its de- 
cision to the people of the nation. 

He was a patriot at all times and in all places. He did not 
count the cost. His patriotism was pure and constant. Its flame 
never diminished. It often found expression in words of eloquence 
and power, but it was never content with these. Mere lip service 
would not do. It sought action and was impatient until the word 
became a deed. It was a living, vital force, magnetic in quality — 
capable of begetting its kind. It made him earnest. It gave him 

23 



ip|Jirati0« (tmman\t& 



profound conviction, and what we may term elemental strength. It 
was the primal source of his greatness, and in it lay, in large part, 
the secret of his power over men. 

He was a lawyer of 'superior talents and real learning.' He 
knew the value and possessed the genius of preparation. Until he 
was prepared he would not speak, and then he spoke as one having 
authority. His mind was orderly, logical and discriminating. He 
laid his premise with painstaking care and accuracy and built his 
argument thereon with such clear and powerful reason that his con- 
clusion followed as an inevitable result. Indeed, every speech he 
ever made, whether on the hustings, in the courts, or in the senate 
chamber, was an argument, leading with unerring logic and irresist- 
ible force from premise to conclusion. His power of lucid, force- 
ful statement was unsurpassed. He realized that a proposition 
clearly and accurately stated is half argued. His language was 
simple, but alive with Anglo-Saxon strength. He spoke directly to 
the subject in hand. His earnestness and profound conviction, 
backed by a character of granite, gave him a directness and a sim- 
plicity of speech rarely equaled. This made him truly eloquent and 
enabled him slowly but surely to take possession of those who 
listened, and at the end to hold them with tentacles of steel. He 
piled argument upon argument until the culminative effect became 
crushing and overwhelming. He was master of invective and used 
it at times with annihilating force. He hated error and loved the 
right. His attack upon the one was only equaled by his defense of 
the other. These qualities gave him leadership everywhere, in the 
forum, in popular assemblage and in the senate. And this leader- 
ship he assumed and held. From the day he took the oath of office 
as Governor until he died, he was the acknowledged leader of his 
party in Indiana. Within it he had no rival. He shaped its poli- 
cies, dictated its platforms, dominated its councils, led its cam- 
paigns and won its victories. During the sixteen years of his pub- 
lic life there were in the leadership of the opposing party at least 
four great men — Hendricks, McDonald, Vorhees and Turpie — men 
noted for brilliancy, for solid attainments and for their ability to 
reach the popular mind, but, as a campaigner, in debate and in in- 
tellectual power, he surpassed them all. Indeed, the state has never 
had his equal in this regard. Nor was his leadership confined to 
Indiana. He entered the United States Senate without legislative 
experience, at a time when great fundamental questions touching 

24 



iHortott iltinumtnt Olmnmtfisiott 



the very existence and life of the government, engaged its attention, 
and when it was filled with trained statesmen, possessing really 
great parts, but even these made way for him and yielded him 
leadership almost from the beginning. For ten years he was the 
master spirit of that great body, and this in spite of the fact that 
he could not walk to his seat or stand while speaking. Sheer in- 
tellectual force, urged on and directed by an unyielding and un- 
conquerable will, and supplemented by an industry that knew 
neither weariness nor lagging, gave him leadership in every sphere 
of action. 

He became Governor of the state at thirty-eight, in the flower of 
magnificent manhood, at the beginning of the most crucial period 
of our national history. Secession was fast becoming an accom- 
plished fact as far as conventions and resolutions and armed prepa- 
ration could make it such. Every moment was tense with ex- 
pectancy. Uncertainty, doubt and irresolution were everywhere 
except in the South. Even strong men held their tongues, afraid 
to speak. Compromise was demanded by many. Peaceable ac- 
ceptance of secession was openly advocated. Horace Greeley and 
the New York Tribune were preaching non-resistance. Thousands 
of loyal and well meaning men could see no legal way of resisting 
secession. This was Morton's hour. He saw and understood and 
rose to meet the issue as only the really great can see and under- 
stand and rise. There was in him elemental strength, and with it 
stalwart courage, adamantine purpose and a will that never broke 
or wavered. The war was a crucible into which was poured the 
elements of human greatness ; from these and in its stress and heat 
and flame, his character was forged, and in the cast there was no 
flaw. He filled the occasion to the brim. In a meeting held in the 
court house in the city of Indianapolis, on November 22, 1860, he 
put the issue before the country as it really was, in such lucid 
terms, with such cogent reasoning and such masterful statement 
of the Nation 's right and the duty of loyal men, as to challenge its 
thought and carry conviction to the minds of the thousands who 
heard and read. The citizen of Indiana who has not read this 
speech has yet a duty to perform before he is really qualified to 
discharge the obligations of his free citizenship. There is in liter- 
ature no more lucid, forceful statement of the doctrine underlying 
national solidarity and unity than that made by him on this occa- 
sion. Its value can only be appreciated by those having full and 

25 



iipbtratuin (UntmonxsB 



accurate knowledge of the circumstances under which it was ut- 
tered and of the doubt and uncertainty then pervading the country. 

It was delivered eight days before Chase found the courage to 
declare for the ' enforcement of the laws of the Union at all hazards 
and against all opposition,' and weeks before he had uttered his 
famous epigram 'Inauguration first, adjustment afterward.' The 
effect was electrical. It broke the spell, made rifts in the clouds 
and let the sunlight of patriotism into many hearts. Lincoln heard 
it in his Springfield home and knew instinctively that it contained 
a statement of the principles which alone could save the Union. 

When at last the issue passed 'from the field of argument to the 
solemn fact of war,' Morton became almost ubiquitous. LincoLa's 
proclamation calling for troops was answered by telegraph, tender- 
ing twice Indiana's quota, before the ink was dry upon the paper 
where it ha^ been inscribed. From that time on his efforts never 
ceased. He bombarded Washington with telegrams and knocked in 
person at slothful department doors. Arms and munitions could 
not be obtained fast enough. Action, action, action, rang con- 
tinuously through message, word and deed; not thoughtless, spas- 
modic, erratic action; but intelligent, far-sighted, sustained and 
incessant action. The days became too short and their hours too 
few. He could neither do enough himself nor get others to do 
enough. The field was so wide, the need so great. A recreant and 
disloyal legislature refused to receive his message written and sent 
to it under the mandate of the constitution its members had sworn 
to support, and adjourned without making provision for the prose- 
cution of the war or for the maintenance of the state government. 
Then for two years Morton became the State. He raised funds, 
disbursed and applied them as the needs of the case required ; as- 
sembled supplies, and mustered and equipped an army. And what 
an army it was — 208,000 — many more than fought under McClel- 
lan at Antietam or under Meade at Gettysburg. Would you know 
the history of that army ? Go read the annals of the mighty strug- 
gle into whose red vortex its successive regiments were hurled, some 
to drop on the weary march, some to sicken and die of disease, 
many to fall facing their country 's foes at the battle 's front, others 
to perish from starvation and thirst in prison pens, others to return 
home after months of pain and suffering, maimed and broken in 
body and health, and all to fight their way to deathless fame and 
fadeless glory. 



26 



Moxtan Monnimnt (tommxBBwn 



He acted sometimes outside the constitution and beyond the law, 
but always for public good. The necessities of the struggle to pre- 
serve the state and the nation compelled him at times to go beyond 
the limitations of both ; but he always acted in the open and never 
abused the power he assumed. 

In the midst of preparation, the enlistment and equipment of 
fresh troops and of recruits to fill the thinned ranks of regiments 
already gone, he did not forget the value of sanitation in camp, or 
overlook the needs of the sick and wounded. Thousands of hearts 
were cheered and lives saved by timely succor sent by him. He 
found time to go to the front and walk amid the dreary hospitals of 
pain to see for himself and literally to bind up the wounds of the 
men who had gone into battle under the inspiration of his word and 
deed. Nor did he forget the widowed and the fatherless. Indiana 
soldiers soon came to know that this stern, unyielding man was as 
gentle as a woman and as tender as an angel of mercy when he 
looked upon their wounds and beheld their suffering. It was then 
that they learned to love him ; as to how well they loved him, let 
the devotion with which they followed him for sixteen years make 
answer ; let this monument of granite and this statue of bronze give 
evidence; let the thousands of their surviving comrades here as- 
sembled be living witnesses. 

Nor did this many-sided man overlook civic affairs or social 
needs. Under his recommendation and direction a state normal 
school was established, an agricultural college founded and a law 
enacted creating a reform school for incorrigible boys. Reforms 
were inaugurated in the public service and strict accountability re- 
quired of all who handled public funds. In his nature avarice had 
no place. He lived and died an honest man. He left a statement 
of what constitutes a test of a political party's integrity, so apt, so 
lucid and so forceful, and which meets the need of the present day 
so perfectly, that I commend it to the thoughtful consideration of 
all men of all parties. It comes to me with the consolation of an 
epistle from the Apostles. Standing here in the presence of his 
silent image, let us hear it, receive its message, carry it away with 
us and build upon it a higher conception of our own obligation to 
party, to society and to the state : 

' The true test as to whether any party is honest is found in the 
fact that when it finds an offender or scoundrel in its ranks, it will 
punish or expel him. If upon discovery, it lop off the rotten mem- 

27 



S^JJiration Ol^remoni^a 



ber, and put away the uncleanliness, it vindicates its character as 
an honest party. If, on the other hand, it defend the criminal, 
palliate his guilt, and shield him from punishment, then its mem- 
bers become partners in his crime, alike corrupt and deserving of 
the condemnation of all men. ' 

Morton's services during the war were really national in char- 
acter. He comprehended almost from the beginning the magnitude 
of the struggle, and did much to prepare the mind of the country 
for the awful sacrifice it was to make. The position of Indiana was 
of pivotal importance. Under his leadership and the inspiration of 
his word and the impelling force of his effort, her stand became 
decisive and her place in the contest unquestioned. He lifted her 
to eminence and gave her a proud place among the states. 

The value of Kentucky to the Union was quickly seen and ap- 
preciated and none did more to decide her wavering course than he. 
He urged the importance of the opening of the Mississippi river 
upon the president with persistent earnestness until it became an 
accomplished fact. He repelled invasion at home and saved the 
principal city of a neighboring state from capture. His example of 
lofty patriotism, ceaseless effort and unchanging purpose became 
an inspiration to the whole nation. 

When he died his mantle was laid away. There was no Elisha 
to receive it, nor has there since been. There were great men in 
Indiana before him; there were great men among his 
contemporaries; there have since been great men among her 
sons, and there will yet be great men born to her, but none 
have had such opportunity, such setting as he. Nor have any 
been so well prepared to meet such opportunity as came to 
him, or so weU fitted for such setting as that which en- 
vironed him. The very times in which he lived were elemental. A 
great man met a great occasion. The result was a mountain peak in 
human history. So it was with Luther, with Cromwell, with Gara- 
baldi, with "Washington and with Lincoln.' So it will always be 
with the world 's supremely great. He who is able to recognize and 
prepared to meet a great occasion needs but the striking of the hour 
to write his name among the immortals. Oliver P. Morton was 
able to see and was prepared to meet great occasion. He saw more 
clearly and was better prepared than other men. "When it burst 
upon him he rose in strength and grandeur, and by his deeds proved 
his kinship to the first born of the centuries gone or yet to come — 

28 



Mavtan ilomtm^ttt (EommtsHuin 



the benefactors of mankind — the unforgetables of the race. Be- 
fore him the state had not known his equal, nor shall we know his 
like again, till in the unfolding purpose of the Infinite another crisis 
great as that in which he lived bursts upon the land, and his great 
soul reincarnated returns to earth to lead again his countrymen 
through its gloom and sacrifice. 

Today, with love and tender recollection not unmixed with awe, 
we dedicate this monument and unveil this statue to his memory, 
fondly hoping it may stand through all the multiplying years as a 
reminder to our posterity of his greatness and our esteem. 

But better than monuments and statues, more enduring than 
marble and bronze, are the impress he left upon his time, the uplift 
he gave to American ideals, the revivifying power of his patriotism, 
the enduring influence of his example, and the gathering glory of 
his achievements. Monuments and statues may fall, marble and 
bronze may crumble and lie in dust beneath the trampling feet of 
thoughtless multitudes that * cannot know and do not care, ' but the 
memory of these shall endure while the nation lives or liberty con- 
tinues to be the heritage of man." 

VICE-PRESIDENT 'S ADDRESS. 

Vice-President Charles W. Fairbanks, in response to numerous 
calls from the audience, addressed them as follows : 

*'Mr. President, Members of the Grand Army of the Republic, 
Ladies and Gentlemen : 

I have not come here today to engage in any speech. The oc- 
casion for my speaking is this evening. I cannot, however, refrain 
from the invitation which has come to me to say a few words as 
they occur to me. 

The occasion is one of supreme interest to every Indianian, to 
every patriot, for this is, indeed, a patriotic hour. I want to ex- 
press to the chief executive of the state my profound appreciation 
of an oration that is well worthy of this great occasion. 

We have met, it is said, to do honor to the memory of Oliver 
P. Morton. That is in a sense true, but in a larger sense we have 
met to do honor to the people of our state. For we honor ourselves 
when we honor those who have done arduous service in the cause 
of liberty in the years gone by. It is a happy circumstance that 
this monument has arisen here in close fellowship with that monu- 

29 



S^Mratiott (BmmonxsB 



ment of glory that stands in the circle beyond. Indiana a few 
years ago contributed from the treasury of the state hundreds 
of thousands of dollars to erect that shaft in commemoration of 
the services of the brave sons of Indiana who went down on the 
battlefield in the years that have passed. 

Morton was not a soldier, it is true; but he was so near a 
soldier that it was according to the eternal verities that his monu- 
ment should stand here in fellowship with that monument that 
has been erected to commemorate the valor of the soldiers of the 
state. 

Oliver P. Morton became immortal because he rendered services 
in behalf of the perpetuity of republican institutions. Our form 
of government in 1861- '65 was put to the supreme test. The over- 
mastering question was, 'Is the government strong enough to 
preserve itself?' From first to last Morton believed it was, and 
his judgment was justified at the immortal meeting held at Appo- 
mattox. Indiana during the heroic days of the Civil War took a 
high place in the respect, confidence and esteem of the entire 
United States. 

A few weeks ago I stood on some of the great battlefields of 
the Civil War. Some of you boys were there at Missionary Ridge, 
Chickamauga and Lookout Mountain. I found everywhere a wil- 
derness of monuments erected by the different states to commemo- 
rate the valor of their sons, and I found that everywhere where 
the battle was the hardest were the monuments commemorating the 
valor of Morton's boys. We have a state of which we may well be 
proud, and the one who added more than any other to its glory, 
the one who stands pre-eminently the greatest of them all, is Oliver 
P. Morton. We meet in the spirit so felicitously expressed by Mr. 
Lincoln upon the historic field of Gettysburg. We do not come 
here to honor those who did arduous service here. We come here 
rather to dedicate ourselves to the preservation of what they so 
grandly achieved here. In that sublime spirit we have come. We 
have not come to honor the memory of Governor Morton, but to 
consecrate ourselves to the maintenance of the institutions for the 
integrity of which he did so much. Republican government is 
preserved only through the intelligence and gratitude of the people 
themselves. 

I am gratified to know that our institutions today are stronger 
than they have ever been ; that we realize as never before the full 



30 



Maxtsin iiomtm^nt (Eommieawn 



splendor and beneficence of them. Thirty years ago, when we 
laid Oliver P. Morton to rest, there were gathered in this city 
the foremost statesmen of our country. They came to pay our great 
leader proper homage. The name of Morton then filled the land. 
The memory of his mighty deeds was fresh in the minds of our 
countrymen. Nearly a generation has come and gone since then, 
and it is a gratifying fact that the service of Morton and the name 
of Morton are as vividly impressed upon the hearts and minds 
of the American people as they were a third of a century ago. 
This is because he stood for things that stood for American liberty. 
This monument will be the mecca, the shrine to which patriots will 
come in the unnumbered years and bathe their souls in its sacred 
atmosphere. 

Republics Avill be born and die again beyond the seas; mon- 
archies will rise and fall into decay; civilizations will be born 
and vanish from the world, and this monument will survive them. 
The principles for which Governor Morton stood are enduring. 
For centuries to come this monument will stand as evidence of the 
gratitude of the patriotic people of a great state, for one who 
wrought greatly in behalf of liberty and republican government in 
a supreme crisis." 

R. B. Brown, Commander-in-Chief of the Grand Army of the 
Republic, was prevailed upon to make a few remarks and did so 
in a most fitting manner, saying in part : 

"The National Grand Army of the Republic wishes to join the 
State of Indiana in honoring the memory of Oliver P. Morton. 
While Morton was not a soldier, it is certainly fitting that the sol- 
diers for whom he cared so carefully should be the first to start 
the movement that ended in the erection of this monument. We 
honor ourselves in thus honoring Indiana's great war Governor." 

The dedicatory exercises were closed by a committee from the 
Daughters of the American Revolution placing upon the pedestal 
of the monument a wreath of flowers, and the department president 
of the Woman 's Relief Corps depositing a silk flag. 

Of the family and relatives of Governor Morton on the plat- 
form during the ceremonies were his son, Walter Morton; his 
grandson, Oliver Perry Throck Morton ; Col. W. R. Hollo way, 
brother-in-law and the war-time secretary of Governor Morton; 
Mrs. Sarah C. Gill, sister of Mrs. Morton; Mrs. John Morton, 

31 



SpJJtratton (^ntmonwB 



daughter-in-law, and Mrs. Edward Holloway, niece of Governor 
Morton. 

It was very much regretted that Mrs. Lueinda Morton, the 
Governor's widow, was unable to be present, owing to severe ill- 
ness, and was thus deprived of the pleasure of witnessing the cere- 
monies and listening to the eloquent tributes paid to her distin- 
guished husband. 

Mrs. Morton took great interest in the work of the Commission 
and made many visits to the studio of the sculptor during the 
time the statue was being modeled; in fact, the model and the 
statue were not accepted by the Commission until approved by 
Mrs. Morton, Colonel Holloway and other relatives. 

Mrs. Morton's approval of the labors of the Commission were 
best shown by the following letter: 

"Indianapolis, Ind., Sept. 29, 1906. 

"Dr. D. R. Lucas, Secretary of the Oliver P. Morton Monument 

Commission : 

"Dear Doctor — Please extend to the members of the Commis- 
sion my great satisfaction and appreciation of their earnest and 
untiring zeal in carrying out the -wishes of the veterans to make 
a monument worthy of the memory of my husband, Oliver P. 
Morton. 

"I think that the statue is magnificent in every particular and 
the likeness is as near perfect as it is possible to make in plaster, 
and altogether a worthy testimonial for his services to his state 
and country. 

"The selection of the Commission was eminently a wise one, 
being composed of his best friends who knew him well, and were 
qualified to judge of its merits. 

"In behalf of myself and family, I express to you my most 
earnest thanks. Sincerely yours, 

"LuciNDA M. Morton." 

CAMP FIRE. 

On the evening of the day of the dedication, the Grand 
Army camp fire was held at Tomlinson Hall, the use of 
which was kindly given without cost by Mayor Charles A. 
Bookwalter, thus closing up the Morton day exercises. The 

32 



iHnrton iionumpnt (flommtHHioit 



meeting was presided over by Captain William A. 
Ketcham, Department Commander of the Indiana Grand 
Army of the Republic, who introduced each speaker with 
appropriate remarks. 

Commander-in-Chief of the G. A. E. R. B. Brown em- 
phasized the value of peace and the influence for peace that 
the old soldier exerted, saying: "War, cruel, brutal war, 
is alien to the growth of a great people. Great is war, on 
inspired occasions, but greater is peace, and we, the Grand 
Army of the Republic, the veterans who know the horrors 
of war, grim and real, we teach peace to all the world. ' ' 

Vice-President Charles W. Fairbanks was one of the 
principal speakers, and he discussed Morton as the great 
war Governor, saying: 

We may say without invidious distinction that President Lin- 
coln leaned more upon Governor Morton than upon the Governor 
of any other state. The great President found in the great Gov. 
emor a wise counselor, a quick and resolute supporter. 

Governor Morton realized at the outbreak of the hostilities, in 
a fuller sense than most men, the gravity of the task which eon- 
fronted the government. He realized that a war was at hand which 
would shake the foundations of the republic and which would not 
end without prolonged and serious effort. He believed that the 
secession movement would not be arrested and peace restored with- 
out the use of a large army. He knew that the work of preserving 
the national life meant a tremendous loss of precious blood and 
the expenditure of vast revenues of both state and nation. 

Realizing all of this, there was no hesitancy upon his part to 
do the utmost that lay within his power. He was swift to offer 
regiment after regiment of the best young men of the state to aid 
the government in preserving the integrity of the nation and in 
maintaining the supremacy of the flag of the republic. No better 
soldiers than the Indiana boys ever took up arms in any cause 
since the world began. They were found upon every field where 
arduous work was to be done and they left an imperishable record 
of heroic services which added to the honor of their state and to 
the glory of their nation. 

[3-17956] 33 



Irlitrattott dpr^mottwH 



After the war closed, Governor Morton was transferred to the 
Senate of the United States, where his abilities were needed in the 
solution of the great questions which grew out of the war. He 
met there the nation's ablest statesmen and from the beginning 
stood among the very foremost. He carried into the work of this 
larger theater of his effort singleness of purpose and a complete 
consecration to public duty which characterized him in all of his 
illustrious career. He was an indefatigable worker. He gave over 
to the service in which he was engaged all of the wealth of genius, 
statesmanship and patriotism which he possessed. The problems 
with which he was obliged to deal were both many and grave. He 
made his contribution to their solution in the private councils of 
his party, in the committee room and upon the floor of the Senate. 
He was a positive, aggressive factor always and everywhere, leav- 
ing the impress of his genius upon his party's politics and the 
nation's laws. 

He did much to secure the adoption of the fourteenth and fif- 
teenth amendments to the Constitution of the United States, and 
Avhile opposing the creation of the electoral commission to determine 
the disputed presidential election of 1876, he went upon the com- 
mission and rendered conspicuous and invaluable service in the 
solution of the serious and difficult questions which taxed its con- 
sideration. 

To recall the details of his work in the Senate is beyond the 
limits of my purpose ; it is sufficient to say they were both numer- 
ous and important and are a part of the enduring and splendid 
record of our nation's legislature. 

Joseph W. O'Neall, Adjutant-General of the Grand 
Army of the Republic, spoke for a few minutes, closing with 
an appeal to the veterans to remain loyal to the Grand 
Army of the Republic, and asking that every effort be made 
to draw all old soldiers into the organization. 

Albert Baker, son of ex-Governor Conrad Baker, spoke 
of Morton as Governor, of Morton's faith in the people, 
and emphasized how that faith in them made their faith in 
him. He also spoke of the personal side of Governor Mor- 
ton, "whom every soldier regarded as his messmate." 



34 



iiorton iUonxmt^nt OInmmiaBtnn 



Major J. M. Ostrander spoke of the '^True Model Sol- 
dier." He took George H. Thomas as the model soldier, 
and one to whom sufficient recognition had not been given. 
He enumerated Chickamauga, Missionary Ridge, Asheville, 
Stone River and the Cumberland, to show that "Thomas 
was there." 

Music was interspersed throughout the program. The 
vocal music was furnished by the Scottish Rite Double Male 
Quartet, composed of John H. Wilson, Samuel Potter, A. 
S. Willard, Frank M. Ketcham, Charles J. W. Parker, Jr., 
F. M. Loomis, Oliver W. Isensee and J. C. Burkhart. The 
mixed quartet was composed of Miss Arie Dazey, Miss 
Belle Ketron, W. E. Goodnow and W. R. Rominger. Miss 
Myra Goodnow was the accompanist. 

After the dedication, the only unfinished work to be 
done was the paving of Morton Plaza and the approaches 
thereto. This the committee appointed for this purpose 
took up, and as soon as the crushed granite and granite 
steps were received, the best of workmanship was secured 
and in a very short time that work was completed, at a cost 
of $1,139.75. 

It is with deep sorrow that we report the death of Rev. 
Daniel R. Lucas, the efficient secretary of this Commission, 
which occurred November 3, 1907, after an illness of sev- 
eral weeks. He lived to see the completion and dedica- 
tion of the work in which he had shown great interest, and 
to which he had given his time in full measure. He was 
buried Wednesday, November 6, 1907, with a host of sor- 
rowing friends and comrades of the Civil War in attend- 
ance. 

November 21, 1907. The Commission met upon call of 
the president and the following memorial was unanimously 
adopted : 



35 



S^Jitratton (tntmaniBB 



"Whereas, Daniel R. Lucas, secretary of the Morton Monument 
Commission, was removed by death November 3, 1907; therefore, 
be it 

Resolved by the Commission, That the following tribute be 
spread upon the records and a copy of the same be sent to the 
widow and be given to the press. 

That our late secretary faithfully and efficiently performed 
every duty that was required of him, and while he shared with the 
Commission and the sculptor in the general conception of the 
Morton Monument, the inscription that appears on the tablet 
on the reverse side of the upper die of the pedestal, and just 
below the figure of Morton, was his own composition and approved 
by the Commission, whereon he not only gave the birth and death 
of our great Governor, but the tribute that he paid to him was 
the product of his great and generous heart. 

The life of Daniel R. Lucas was one of the many that was worth 
its living. During the years of his early manhood he served his 
country as a soldier in the great war of the rebellion from 1862 
to 1865. 

In the main he spent his subsequent life in proclaiming the 
gospel of peace and good \nll to men on earth; beside, he was 
possessed of a public spirit that prompted him to engage in great 
enterprises for the enduring benefit of the community in which 
he lived, the most notable of which was Drake University at Des 
Moines, Iowa, the Central Christian Church building in the city 
of Indianapolis, and not the least of all, his Avork upon the monu- 
ment builded and dedicated to Indiana 's great war Governor. 

He was a member of the Grand Army of the Republic, and was 
one of its very prominent advisers and counselors. He was hon- 
ored by being elected chaplain-in -chief of its national organiza- 
tion, one of the highest offices within its gift, as well as commander 
of the Department of Indiana, and his own local post. 

He was an active member of the Military Order of the Loyal 
Legion and was several times elected chaplain of Indiana Com- 
mandery of that organization. 

A brave, generous Christian man has gone to his final reward. 
Our most profound sympathy goes with this tribute to his faithful 
companion and family. 



36 



mortnn mottuttiFttt (EflmmtHaum 



Commissioner Henry C. Adams was then unanimously 
elected Secretary and was instructed to prepare a report 
of the Commission and superintend the publishing of the 
same. 

The Commission is chargeable with $35,000, the appro- 
priation made by the Legislature for the purpose of erect- 
ing the monument, and $1,544.40 collected from Grand 
Army Posts, Woman's Relief Corps, individuals and other 
sources, making a total of $36,544.40. 

We submit herewith a detailed statement of the receipts 
and expeditures, showing a balance in the hands of the 
treasurer of state of $297.93. 

Receipts. 

Appropriation by State $35,000 00 

Subscriptions from G. A. R. Posts, individuals, etc. . . 1,544 40 

Total $36,544 40 

Disbursements. 

Franklin Simmons, model $55 80 

Rudolf Schwarz, sculptor, bronze work. , . . 17,585 00 
Chas. G. Blake & Co., granite and cement 

work 14,131 00 

H. C. Adams, paving plaza, approved by 

Commission 1,139 75 

John R. Lowe, architect 224 49 

E. E. Dunlap, supervising architect 100 00 

Sentinel Printing Company 160 98 

Emma K. Stuart, stenographic services . . 230 00 

Postage 76 71 

Expenses of Com. W. R. King, R. R. fare, 

etc 31 65 

Expenses of Com. I. H. C. Royse, R. R. 

fare, etc 63 34 

Meals for Commission 32 80 



37 



SpJiUattim (BntmanxsB 



Long distance telephone $2 70 

Advertisements for bids 20 39 

W. D. Tatman, Rink and Ind. Elec. Co., 

pictures 8 25 

Expenses dedication of monument 583 61 

D. R. Lucas, salary as secretary, 28 mouths 1,680 00 $36,246 47 

Balance in hands of treasurer of state . . $297 93 

The Commission desire to express its grateful acknowl- 
edgment to Hon. James Bingham, attorney-general of the 
state, who has prepared all contracts and bonds which have 
been made by the Commission with contractors for the 
various parts of the work, and by his advice the Commis- 
sion have been guided in all matters of legal procedure. 

The Commission desire to express to you their grateful 
appreciation of the honor that you have conferred upon 
them by their appointment to carry out the wishes of the 
people of Indiana, in the erection of the tribute to Governor 
Morton. The Commission also recognize with gratitude 
the very great assistance you have rendered them as they 
proceeded with this work. You have always been ready, 
with advice and counsel, which was so often sought, and 
have always shown, not only an official interest, but a very 
deep personal interest as well in their labors. 
Respectfully submitted, 

Waeren R. King, President, 
E. B. Martindale, 
Joseph I. Irwin, 

I. H. C. ROYSE, 

Henry C. Adams, Secretary, 

Board of Commissioners. 

Indianapolis, Ind., February 19, 1908. 



38 



